March 18, 2008

Pennsylvania Targets AIDS Among Seniors

HIV/AIDS groups in Pennsylvania are creating awareness campaigns for older adults, reports The Patriot-News, a newspaper in the state capital of Harrisburg (pennlive.com, 3/17).

The AIDS Planning Coalition of South Central Pennsylvania has published a brochure that says, “HIV/AIDS is ageless.” The coalition says it plans to distribute the brochures in doctors’ offices and senior centers. Another program, the Hamilton HOPE program, is also working in senior centers across the state to increase awareness about the risk of contracting HIV.

The Patriot-News points out that people over the age of 50 accounted for 19 percent of all new AIDS cases in 2005, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is largely due to misperceptions that older adults aren’t vulnerable to HIV and new sexual enhancement drugs that are prolonging older adults’ sex lives.

NEW! Scroll down to comment on this story.

Name:	(2-50 characters)
Email:	(will not show)
City:	(optional)

Comment (500 characters left):

(Note: The POZ team review all comments before they are posted. Please do not include either ":" or "@" in your comment.)

| Posting Rules

Previous Comments:

Mark, Aztec, 2008-03-27 10:09:29
It's about time. For some reason the government and society in general seem to think only young people have sex or are at risk. This is long overdue.